How an Ignition Coil Works: Learn What It Does & When to Replace It

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Ignition systems have a very important purpose: to create a spark that ignites the fuel-air mixture in the cylinder of your engine. The timing of this is very important, and if it is off by even a small fraction of a second, the engine may run very poorly or perhaps not at all. So, when the piston is at the top of its compression stroke, the ignition system sends an extremely high voltage to your spark plugs in each cylinder. The tip of each spark plug has a gap that the voltage must jump across in order to meet the ground, and this is where the spark occurs.

What Ignition Coils Do?

Alright, so where does the ignition coil come into play? Well, the ignition system must create a voltage high enough (20,000+) to jump across the gap of your spark plugs. Your low voltage primary circuit operates at battery voltage (which is only about 12 to 14.5 volts) and is responsible for creating the signal to fire the spark plug and sending that signal to the ignition coil. Your ignition coil is the component that converts the weak 12 volt signal into the high 20,000+ volt charge. So, without your ignition coil, there wouldn’t be enough voltage to start your engine.

How Ignitition Systems Improve Your Engine

Keeping up with your various tune ups, or purchasing tune-up kits for those DIYers, is a helpful way to keep your ignition system going strong. Understanding ignition coils, spark plugs wires and other ignition system parts will help you in figuring out just what needs to be replaced in the future. And, choosing top brands like Pulstar and ACCEL will help ensure that your engine is getting the best treatment possible.

Installing The Best Coils

Alright, so now that you understand your ignition system, here’s all the information you need to know about various exhaust systems. Just kidding! That’s enough for one day. But, if you have any other questions about ignition systems, be sure to check out the user guides and customer reviews available on our site.